Monday, July 1, 2013

Noted Women Scientists of India - an attempt at enumeration

Priya Ravichandran (@binaryfootprint on Twitter), who is a program manager and writer with the Takshashila Institution, threw a challenge on Twitter the other day. She asked her followers to name top 5 women scientists of India without doing a Google search first. Easy-peesy, I thought. But as I tried to remember the names, I was mortified to discover that beyond Dr. Asima Chatterjee (a noted Chemist) and Dr. Sipra Guha Mukherjee (a noted plant biologist, who had taught us at the Jawaharlal Nehru University), I couldn't remember off-hand the names of any top tier Indian women in the pure sciences fields. Even in my dotage, this was embarrassing. So, I enlisted the help of my friends on Facebook (Viva la social media!) and asked them to come up with names. In this post, I am going to list those names that came up. One caveat: the list, understandably, may be slightly biased towards women in bioscience and related fields - since many of my friends and I are biology researchers. However, I'd love it if you, dear readers, could come up with other names, and leave them in the comments, along with a few words in description.
Before I begin, let me gratefully acknowledge all those friends who have offered their suggestions. Two friends suggested that I start looking into the list of the awardees of the SS Bhatnagar award, a science award in India given annually by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research of the Government of India for fundamental and applied research. The award was instituted in 1958; it seems a monumental shame that only 14 women (out of over 450 total awardees) were given this award until 2012! It certainly doesn't bode well for women scientists in India.

Neuroscientist, faculty member at Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai; major research interest: Genetic mechanisms and signaling pathways of the cerebral cortex and amygdala of the developing brain.

Professor at the Indian Statistical Institute, Calcutta; fellow of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), and Indian National Academy of Engineering; main research interest: Computational Biology and genetic algorithms.

Professor at the School of Mathematics, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai; Professor at Department of Mathematics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver; PhD student of Raman Parimala (see below); mathematician renowned for algebraic theory; fellow of Indian Academy of Sciences (IAS), NAS, Indian National Science Academy (INSA).

Emeritus Scientist, Bose Institute, CSIR; former professor, Department of Biochemistry, Indian Association of Cultivation of Science; main research interest: tumor biochemistry and molecular enzymology.

Physician Scientist with major focus on immune responses in Leprosy; recipient of innumerable national and international awards, including Padmashree, the fourth highest civilian award in India; fellow and former vice president of the NAS; fellow of the IAS, National Academy of Medical Sciences, and many other national and international bodies.

(1932-2008) Scientist in the field of Cytogenetics and Genetic Toxicology; founding editor of the international journal The Nucleus; Second woman to be conferred a Doctorate of Science (D.Sc.) by University of Calcutta formerly, professor of Botany, University of Calcutta; member of INSA; author of several books on Chromosome and Genetic techniques. [Link to Obit]

(1917-2006) Formerly Professor of Chemistry, University of Calcutta; first woman to be awarded a D.Sc. by an Indian university (University of Calcutta); noted for her work in organic chemistry and medicinal plants; member of INSA. [Link to Obit]

In addition to above, the following is a list of elected women fellows of prestigious national science bodies in India, such as IAS, NAS, and INSA. This compilation is gleaned from the websites of IAS, INSA, as well as individual institutions of the concerned scientists.

Professor at the Molecular Biophysics unit, IISc; she did her PhD on collagen triple helix under the mentorship of world-renowned biophysicist GN Ramachandran; her work has elucidated the connection between DNA structure and specific functions such as transcription initiation and replication.

Scientist and Director of the Indian Institute of Geomagnetism, Mumbai; she studies the dynamics and evolution of ionospheric irregularities, which are produced by unstable plasma in earth's ionosphere, and scatter radio frequency waves.

Adjunct professor, University of Pune; she developed a hairless mouse model sensitive to tumor initiation and promotion by environmental agents, such as tobacco; she has identified genetic polymorphisms that confer high oral cancer risk to tobacco users.

Honorary Scientist at the National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases, ICMR; her work has greatly enriched the fields of ribosomes and protein synthesis in Salmonella typhimurium, and of the functions of bacteriophage P22.

Director-In-Charge & Scientist, National institute of Virology; she has conducted excellent research work in pathogenesis of Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) and antibody immunity against HEV infection in pregnant women; she has developed a vaccine Candidate for HEV.

Chief Scientist & Head, Division of Pharmacology, Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI), Lucknow; she has made seminal contributions in the understanding the role of Nitric Oxide in free-radical generation by innate immune cells, and in degenerative pathological conditions.

Professor of Molecular Reproduction, Development and Genetics, at IISc, Bangalore; current research focus includes molecular mechanisms of signalling mediated by cyclic nucleotides, and phosphodiesterase enzymes.

Professor of Plant molecular biology, Bose Institute, CSIR; she has worked on carbohydrate-binding insecticidal plant proteins that inhibit certain agricultural pests, and created transgenic rice, mustard, chickpea and tobacco that were resistant to these pests.

Formerly, Professor, School of Environmental Sciences, JNU; currently, adjunct professor, Special Center for Molecular Medicine, JNU; she has made numerous contributions to studies on mammalian physiological processes.

Primarily a mathematician, she is currently an Honorary Professor at the Centre for Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences of IISc; she has contributed significantly to the understanding of monsoon dynamics, tropical convection, coupling of the tropical atmosphere to the oceans and agricultural strategies for a variable climate; she also spearheaded the efforts culminating in the Indian Climate Research Programme (ICRP).

Professor at the Center for High Energy Physics, IISc, Bangalore; she has done important work on hadronic structure of high-energy photons; she is also known for her hypotheses around innovative ways to seek new particles.

Emeritus Professor at Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Biotechnology, Bharati Vidyapeeth in Pune; she had established the cancer immunology division at Cancer Research Institute, and developed several oral cancer cells lines and monoclonal antibodies that recognize a variety of cancer cells.

Senior Professor at the National Center for Biological Sciences, TIFR, Bangalore; current research interests include the role of intracellular calcium signaling in Drosophila growth and neuronal function, by which she seeks to understand role of calcium signaling in human disease.

Formerly, Professor at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur - same institution where she was the first woman to receive a PhD (1968); her research contributions are related to the design and development of novel and efficient synthetic methods for biomolecules, especially heterocyclic substances and domino reactions.

Professor at the Department of Biotechnology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi; a long time researcher in mycobacteriology, she has made important contribution to the understanding of the intracellular dormancy phenomenon of this bacterial pathogen.

Currently, a Professor of Mathematics at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research in Mohali; her research contributions have been in theory of valuations, function field theory and algebraic number theory.

Scientist affiliated with the Water Technology Center of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute; her work has involved photosynthesis in relation to crop productivity, mechanism of heterosis and drought resistance in crop plants, and she has successfully hybridized drought tolerant and high yielding wheat varieties.

Former Director of the National Institute of Nutrition, ICMR, where she also established the Advance Centre for pre-clinical toxicology at the Food and Drug Toxicology centre; her research has involved diet-cancer interactions, nutrient-drug interactions, environmental toxicology, non-communicable chronic diseases and vitamin B-complex deficiencies.

Former Additional Director General, ICMR, and founder Director of the Institute of Cytology and Preventive Oncology, New Delhi; her work significantly progressed the understanding of cancer of uterine cervix, and the role of Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) in these cancers in India, she was also the Project Director of the National Cancer Registry Project and played a major role in establishing a network of population and hospital-based cancer registries for providing data for cancer research and control in India.

Senior Scientist at the Infectious Disease and Immunology division of the Indian Institute for Chemical Biology (IICB), Calcutta; her current research interest involves the study of glycosylation of biomolecules in various physiological and pathological conditions.

Physician Scientist with major focus on gastrointestinal ultra-structure; she made two important contribution to infectious disease research: (a) established an in vitro model of the pathogenesis of the intestinal lesion in Tropical Sprue, and (b) elucidated rotaviral etiology of acute diarrhea in children in India, as well as the mechanism of microbial diarrhea.

Professor and Head of General Pathology and Microbiology at Saraswati Dental and Medical College, Lucknow; her research contributions include diagnosis and investigation of a variety of viral diseases; several aspects of the viral disease, Japanese encephalitis, were elucidated via her studies; she first developed an immunofluorescence-based technique for rapid diagnosis of Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) infection in patients, and also helped develop an IgM capture ELISA kit for the diagnosis of JE; she initiated the AIDS surveillance center in UP.

Professor of Genetics, University of Delhi; her work has involved the understanding of functional significance of repetitive sequences on the X and Y chromosomes, and genetics of complex traits of disease syndromes, such as schizophrenia, Parkinson's disease, as well as inflammatory rheumatic and bowel diseases; she developed a DNA-based diagnostics for Fragile X syndrome.

Professor and Chair of Hematology department at the Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of
Medical Sciences, Lucknow; her wide-ranging current research interests include basic biology and therapeutic applications of human mesenchymal stem cells, biology and characterization of human bone marrow derived multipotent adult progenitor cells; she has also worked extensively on immune mediated disorders and hematological malignancies.

Chief Scientist at the Center for Cellular and Molecular Biology; her work has significantly elucidated the functional organization of the mammalian cell nucleus, especially the role played by a fibrous nuclear protein called lamin in mediating spatial coordination of transcription and splicing; her observations have progressed the understanding of inherited diseases termed laminopathies.

Deputy Director and Scientist, ICMR National Institute of Pathology, New Delhi; she is an acknowledged expert in the field of leishmaniasis; ongoing research interests include genomics, vaccines, diagnostics, immunopathologies, and mechanism of drug resistance in visceral and cutaneous leishmaniasis.

Physician Scientist with important contributions in the field of infant nutrition and growth, nutrition-immunity interactions, protein energy malnutrition and vitamin A deficiency; her research has had significant impact on food and nutrition policies and programs in India.

Professor, School of Life Sciences, JNU, New Delhi; she is an acknowledged expert in the field of leishamania research; ongoing research interests include identification of chemotherapeutic targets, development of diagnostic biomarkers for drug resistance in leishmania and identification of potential vaccine candidates.

Currently, a Professor of Biology at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Mohali; formerly, a Professor at CCMB, Hyderabad. Her research interests include theoretical biology, nonlinear dynamics and complex systems, with the aim to understand the logic and design of biological processes. Her work has also involved analysis of epidemiological data of infectious diseases, studies in host-parasite evolution using genomic data and computational modeling, and use of graph theory to understand macroscopic properties of intracellular networks. In addition, she is an avid Science Educator.

Professor of Biochemistry, IISc, Bangalore; she has made significant contribution to the understanding of biochemistry and mechanism of viral infection of plants, and elucidated the natures of some plant viruses native to India; her work led to the development of transgenic cotton plants resistant to cotton leaf curl disease.

Staff Scientist, National Institute of Immunology, New Delhi; her work has contributed to the understanding of the mechanisms of cellular defense from oxidative stress and modalities of cell death in both multicellular and unicellular environments; her earlier research involved physiology of reproduction and contraception, and she has served as a member of the ICMR Task Force on male contraception.

Professor of Zoology, Karnataka University; her research has made outstanding contributions to reproductive and behavioral ecology of South Indian Agamid lizards, elucidating reproductive events and socio-sexual mechanisms controlling reproduction. A first in her field in India, she successfully raised and bred the lizard Calotes versicolor in captivity, and demonstrated how the lizards trade-off energy for manipulation of many reproductive physiological processes; she was one of the first to provide experimental proof to the "stress induced evolution of viviparity" hypothesis.

Formerly, a Professor of Mathematics at University of Delhi, and currently, an INSA Senior Scientist; she has worked in the "areas of linear operators in locally convex spaces, locally convex algebras, spectral synthesis on hypergroups, applications of harmonic analysis to differential equations and orthogonal polynomials, geometry of the range of a vector measure, and Quotient Rings of algebras of functions and operators" (Note: Text quoted from her INSA page, because I have no clue about Mathematics.)

Associate Professor, NCBS-TIFR; current research interests include analysis of higher level structure and function of proteins and theoretical prediction of protein function from its structure using Bioinformatics and Genome Analysis tools.

Former Director of the Malaria Research Center, ICMR; an insect geneticist by training, she focused on biology, epidemiology, as well as insecticide resistance of mosquito vectors of various diseases including Malaria; her studies paved the way for the genetic control of mosquitoes; she also developed diagnostic assays to identify non-vector sibling species to the vectors, which helped develop effective control strategies for the malaria vectors.

Professor of Physics, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Pune; she is recognized for her work on nanomaterials, hard coatings and high strength aerogels, and she was made noteworthy contributions in the field of Nanotechnology, Materials Science and Surface Science; she is also an enthusiastic author and science communicator.

Mathematical Scientist at TIFR; she is regarded as an expert in the field of "moduli spaces of torsionfree sheaves on singular curves" (Note. Again, quoted from her INSA page. I have no idea what these words mean.).

Professor of Microbiology and Cell Biology at IISc, Bangalore; her current research interests involve the study of genes that control cell division and differentiation, and thereby regulate flowering and plant morphology; she also studies post-transcriptional gene regulation.

Professor of Pathology at AIIMS, New Delhi; she is a nationally and internationally recognized expert in Neuropathology, where her work has made seminal contributions in several areas related to Central Nervous System malignancies; her research focus has included basic and translational research in Neuro-Oncology, Neuroendocrinology, Neuromuscular Diseases.

Professor of Biochemistry at Bose Institute, Calcutta; using the protozoan parasite Entamoeba histolytica as a model organism, she studies regulation of phagocytosis, cell division and motility, as well as novel kinesins from eukaryotic pathogens.

Director for the ICMR National Institute for research in Tuberculosis in Chennai, where she leads a multi-disciplinary group of clinical, laboratory and behavioural scientists studying various aspects of TB and TB/HIV; her research contributions have involved investigation of treatment and prevention regimens for TB among HIV-infected adults and children, as well as nutrition, pharmacokinetics and pharmacogenetics of anti-TB and anti-HIV drugs in the Indian population.

Professor at the School of Environmental Sciences, JNU; her group uses the protozoan parasite Entamoeba histolytica as a model system to study the biochemistry and molecular biology of various intracellular proteins.

Professor of Pediatrics in Chhatrapati Shahuji Maharaj Medical University (formerly King George’s Medical College), Lucknow; her area of research work is in child survival, especially after acute respiratory infections; her work has been instrumental in formulating national policy in this area.

Professor of Zoology, Aligarh Muslim University; her area of research is the taxonomy and developmental biology of terrestrial and aquatic nematodes. She is an internationally acknowledged expert in nematode taxonomy, and has contributed to the existing knowledge by inventorying numerous nematode taxa specific to the Indian habitats; she also studied their role as indicators in assessment of the environment quality particularly of Indian wetlands. She holds the distinction of being the first Asian to receive ONTA (Organization of Nematologists of Tropical America) Special Award (2005) for sustained excellence in Nematology.

Professor, Center for Ecological Sciences, IISc, Bangalore; her research work specializes in the evolutionary ecology of inter-species interactions, and she investigates the sensory biology of these interactions, especially their chemical and visual ecology, using various insects as model systems.

An accomplished danseuse in the Odissi tradition of India, Priyambada Mohanty-Hejmadi left her dance recitals in favor of pursuing a career in science, which eventually brought her a Padmashri. She was a former vice-chancellor of Sambalpur University, and was an Emeritus Professor of Zoology at Utkal University, both in Orissa; she was one of the first scientists to demonstrate the phenomenon of homeosis, substitution of body parts, in vertebrates [Link to PDF], and had once worked on temperature-dependent sex determination in Olive Ridley turtles of Orissa, an effort which made way for conservation of these endangered species.

Professor of Molecular Biology and Genetics at Jawaharlal Nehru Center for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Bangalore; her group studies host-pathogen interaction in Malaria, and the current research interests include identification of malarial parasite specific targets for drug development, study of the role of plastid in the parasite, and analysis of parasite fatty acid synthesis. She holds several global patents for anti-malarial agents.

Group Leader, Molecular Cell Biology Division at the Centre for DNA Fingerprinting & Diagnostics; her current research interest is TB immunology, where she studies how various putative virulent proteins help the bacillus in establishing successful infection by counteracting the protective immune responses mounted by the host.

Additional Professor at the Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Lucknow; her research interest includes autoimmune rheumatic diseases, especially Juvenile idiopathic arthritis. Her current research is focused on the role of Toll like receptors and IL-1 gene polymorphism in pathogenesis of juvenile idiopathic arthritis, and the study of immune pathways involved using gene expression profiling.

Physician Scientist in the Department of Gastroenterology, Christian Medical College, Vellore; her research focuses on enteric infections, including rotaviral diarrhea, in children. She studies transmission modes and immune responses to design interventions, and hospital- and community-based disease surveillance utilizing new molecular techniques. Her clinical research work on rotavirus vaccines has lead to the establishment of facilities for Phase I to Phase III studies, as well as laboratory support for vaccine evaluation.

Professor of Plasma Physics, the Institute for Plasma Research, Gandhinagar; her research in plasma science and electron-magentohydrodynamics has brought her international recognition; her work on "Study of Plasma Turbulence" brought her the recognition from the Department of Atomic Energy - Science Research Council for the Outstanding Research Investigator award in 2006.

Currently, Professor of Physics, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Mohali; her work on Chaotic systems is internationally known, and has been featured in the media in connection with its implications for computing systems.

Professor of Physics, SN Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences, Calcutta; her current research interests include: first principles electronic structure calculation and study of magnetic, optical and electronic properties of complex materials, and realistic theory of strongly correlated electron system.

Scientist, CCMB, Hyderabad; her research interest involves the process of gene transcription in relation to the chromosome, emphasizing on assembly of eukaryotic transcription complexes, epigenetics of transcription, chromatin organization, dynamics, and mechanisms.

Professor Emeritus, Department of Microbiology and Cell Biology, IISc, Bangalore; her major research interests are transcription and replication processes catalysed by the RNP complex of two morbilliviruses, and the development of recombinant subunit vaccines; she is also working to understand the molecular epidemiology of the bacteria Streptococcus in India.

Executive Director, Fluorosis Research & Rural Development Foundation; formerly, Professor of Anatomy and Chief of the Fluoride and Fluorosis Research Laboratories at AIIMS; she has been a vocal opponent of artificial fluoridation of water, and has made depositions against the process in many countries.

CSIR Emeritus Professor of Molecular Biophysics, IISc, Bangalore; her main research interest is focused on the understanding of Protein-Structure, Folding, Function and Dynamics through computational biology approaches.

Professor, TIFR Center for Applicable Mathematics; her main area of research is in the analysis of solutions of partial differential equations, which includes questions related to existence, uniqueness and qualitative properties of solutions; her work has important implication for Engineering systems. [Link to an excellent essay about Dr. Ramaswamy by a Florida student.]

Professor, Molecular Biology & Genetics Unit, JNCASR, Bangalore; the main research focus of her lab is to understand the biochemistry of the malarial parasite; using protein engineering/ mutagenesis, spectroscopy and X- Ray crystallographic techniques, her group studies various enzymes of the parasite, working towards the development of new antimalarial drugs.

Professor of Immunology, NCBS-TIFR, Bangalore. Her current primary research focus is the mechanisms that govern programmed cell death (apoptosis) in mammalian cells; using model cell lines, her group explores molecular and biochemical correlates of cellular responses to death or survival cues, which are important for the maintenance of the mammalian immune system, apart from other systems.

Senior Professor of Physics, Bose Institute, Calcutta; she is recognized for her work in magnetism in Condensed Matter, strongly correlated systems and exactly soluble quantum models. Her current research interests also include Quantam Information theory, Statistical Mechanics, and Systems Biology.

(1953-2010) Formerly, Professor of Biology at TIFR, Mumbai; Senior Professor at the NCBS-TIFR, Bangalore; was internationally recognized as a pioneer in the field of neurobiology of smells [Link to Obit].

(1924-2009) Formerly, Professor and Chair of Department of Physical Chemistry at Jadavpur University, Calcutta; she had the distinction of being the first woman member of the Indian Society of Lighting Engineers, and was the founder of Indian Photobiology Society [Link to Obit].

(1897-1984) Emeritus Scientist with Center for Advanced Studies in Botany, University of Madras; main research interest: cytogenetics, plant geography, ethnobotany; recipient of Padmashri for her contribution to science. [Link to Life and Times.]

(1938-2007) Former Professor of Plant Molecular Biology at JNU; mid-60s onwards, she did seminal work that gradually established her as an expert of Plant tissue culture and Plant Biotechnology; fellow of IAS and NAS. She had a charming, serious personality, and was extremely pro-student as a professor. [Link to Obit].

(1929-2012) Dr. Swaran (sometimes written as Swarn) Nityanand is the mother of Dr. Sonia Nityanand whose name features above; I mention this because PubMed and other database searches for her are made difficult by the fact that her daughter, also "S Nityanand", has been featuring prominently in research papers from around late 90s. Dr. Swaran Nityanand appears to have been a long term associate of the Central Drug Research Institute of Lucknow; during this time, she was involved in research, development and clinical trials of at least three medicinal substances: centporpazine, an anti-depressant; centchroman, a non-hormonal anti-fertility agent (which works by selectively inhibiting estrogen receptors, and is still in use in India under a few brand names); and gugulipid, a cholesterol-lowering agent of plant origin (from gum of the Myrrh tree Commiphora wightii; despite favorable mode of action, its performance in large-scale clinical trials was questionable). She also appears to have worked on atherosclerosis and pulmonary hypertension. I couldn't find much more information on her.

Apart from these luminaries, I learnt about several other celebrated women scientists of India in course of this exercise: see the following list. Note that I have tried to include only those who made some contribution to science as a researcher - which means I have omitted some names of accomplished women professionals in the field of medicine and healthcare.

Professor of Physics at the Theoretical Sciences Unit, JNCASR, Bangalore; her current research interests include Condensed Matter physics, physics of metal surfaces and computational nanoscience. She is also a vocal advocate of women's participation in science in India.

Born in 1944, she had the distinction of being simultaneously many firsts: the first woman officer to have completed the Defence Service Staff College course in 1978, and to command the Indian Air Force's Central Medical Establishment; the first woman Air Force officer to become an aviation medicine specialist, and eventually the Director General Medical Services (Air); the first woman officer to be promoted to the rank of Air Vice Marshal and then Air Marshal; the first woman Fellow of the Aerospace Medical Society of India and the first Indian woman to have conducted scientific research at the North Pole (during late 80s, studying the physiology of extreme cold acclimatization). She was also the the first Lady Honorary Surgeon to the President of India.

Professor of Physical Sciences at JNU; her varied research interests include Experimental and Theoretical Quantum Optics, Laser Physics, Nonlinear Optics, Quantum Information, Quantum Measurement, and Magneto-Optics. She is well known for her advocacy for gender-justice and environment-consciousness.

Senior Professor of Chemistry at the Bose Institute, Calcutta; her current research interests include host interactions with pathogens Helicobacter pylori and Mycobacteria, stress response in Mycobacteria in cellular and genetic level, and study of bacterial efflux pumps and their role in drug resistance.

Currently, Professor of Physics at IIT Madras, with research interest in nonlinear dynamics, statistical physics, and chaos; she also studies spatio-temporal intermittency in extended systems, chaotic advection and networks.

A physicist and Fellow of the NAS, she is currently Scientist and Coordinator of the Bioinformatics Center, IICB, Calcutta; she specializes in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology. Her wide research interests include in silico analysis of genome/proteome architectures of host/vector/pathogen systems, and she is internationally acclaimed for her work in these areas.

Physicist, currently an Associate Professor at the SN Bose National Center for Basic Sciences, Calcutta; her research interests include complexities in natural/granular and intelligent systems, whose examples abound in the natural and human world. She has explored game theory, nonlinear dynamical systems, theories of surfaces and interfaces, and most recently, a cosmological model for the aggregation of black holes. She is internationally recognised as a pioneer of sandpile physics.

Currently, a Scientist at the Central Leather Research Institute; a biophysical chemist by training, she specializes in spectroscopy of bio-molecules, protein/lipid interactions at interface, material and interface research.

Chemist, and Senior Assistant Professor at the National Center for Biological Sciences (NCBS), Bangalore; her current research interests include structure and dynamics of nucleic acids and DNA Nanotechnology; she is an Associate of the IAS.

This compilation has 104 names. There are some I am sure I have missed. If you know of prominent Indian women scientists not in these lists, please let me know in the comments. I have included only those who had a modicum of web presence, so that I could find out some information about them. For instance, I found the mention of noted ornithologist and conservationist Dr. Asha Chandola-Saklani, an IAS Fellow and currently Dean of School of Biological sciences at Apeejay Stya University in Haryana; but I omitted her from the list, because I failed to find any other information of substance about her. I am sure there are others like her. In addition, my lists have decidedly had a bias towards the natural sciences - biology, physics and chemistry. So if you are aware of top scientists working in other disciplines of science, pure and applied, please let me know.

Oh, and if you are interested in knowing more about the women scientists of India, you must check out this series from the Women in Science project of the Indian Academy of Sciences, called Lilavati's daughters; it is a collection of biographical essays about past women scientists of India, as well as autobiographical essays written by some current women scientists.

2 comments:

I don't know if this qualifies as an Indian scientist, but turns out that the ME in the Trayvon Martin Murder trial was trained in India. "As a native of Madras, South India, Rao received her Bachelor of Science degree in Zoology from Stella Maris College in India, as well as a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery from St. John’s Medical School at Bangalore University in India. In addition to fulfilling the requirements for the Federal Licensing Examination to become board certified in the U.S., Rao completed both a one-year internship at St. Martha’s Hospital in Bangalore, India and a five-year pathology residency program. " She has also published a bunch, "Rao has published numerous professional articles in her field such as, “Symmetrical Hypopigmentation of the Nipples Secondary to Trauma” and “A Forensic Science Approach to a Starved Child.” She has also published several books in her profession including, “Atlas of Forensic Pathology” and Practical Forensic Pathology.”"

I found this stuff from the link here http://theholmeseducationpost.com/2012/06/what-career-path-can-lead-to-a-chief-medical-examiner/

Thank you Rini. I am glad to know of Dr. Rao. However, in the list above, I have sort of tried to restrict the names to people who have significantly contributed to laboratory research. Perhaps I shall make another list of noted physicians and physician-scientists.

There is in truth no past, only a memory of the past. Blink your eyes, and the world you see next did not exist when you closed them. Therefore... the only appropriate state of the mind is surprise. The only appropriate state of the heart is joy. The sky you see now, you have never seen before. The perfect moment is now. Be glad of it. (Terry Pratchett - Thief of Time, 2002)